Manual photography cheat sheet — where can I find one, or what should be on it?

Question

I have been trying to shoot more in manual modes (both camera and flash). At this point, I understand all the concepts, but all the adjustments slow me down.

I'd like to have a "cheat sheet" with all the basic calculations/tables on it that I can refer to in order to speed up the process, in a format that I can easily keep in my camera bag.

Does anyone know of a good sheet, or alternatively, if I create it what information should I include?

At the moment I'd like to have at least:

• an f-stop list (just full stops)
• basic guide number information

Answer

Since there are 3 important variables here: aperture, shutter speed and ISO, I would Google for Exposure Triangle Cheat Sheet for example. Here are a few:

• Manual Mode Cheat Sheet (Muddyboots Photography Blog)
• Exposure Chart Cheat Sheet (Flickr)
• My Exposure Triangle Cheat Sheet (glark.org)
• Aperture, ISO, and Shutter Speed Explained (not a sheet, but you can compact it)

I see you updated your question. With respect to guide numbers here is one:

• Flash unit Guide Number calculations (for film)

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